United States v. Soto

On
November 2, 2015, the New Hampshire State Police executed a
search warrant on an apartment in Manchester linked to the
defendant, FNU LNU (First Name Unknown, Last Name Unknown).
Although the search warrant authorized the seizure of various
documents and other evidence related to identity fraud, the
officers found a large quantity of what looked like heroin
and other drugs in the apartment.

The
defendant is charged with possession of a controlled
substance with intent to distribute in violation of 21
U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). He moves to suppress all
evidence seized during the search of his apartment. The
government objects. On December 15, 2016, the court held an
evidentiary hearing on this motion. For the reasons that
follow, the court denies the motion.

Background

In the
fall of 2015, New Hampshire State Police Trooper James G.
O'Leary began investigating Apartment 402 at 138 Pearl
Street in Manchester, New Hampshire (“Apartment
402”). Trooper O'Leary had received information
from the New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles
(“DMV”) that the DMV suspected a person of using
fraudulent documents to obtain a New Hampshire driver's
license. The documents referenced Apartment 402 as the
person's address.

Trooper
O'Leary's investigation more than confirmed the
DMV's suspicions. He identified an individual claiming to
be Miguel Angel Sanchez Caraballo as the person who had
obtained a driver's license using Apartment 402 as his
address. Trooper O'Leary also determined that, in March
1996, a person using the Sanchez Caraballo identity had been
convicted in this court for passport fraud.[1] The photograph
used in the false passport application matched the photograph
on the driver's license that the DMV recently issued to
the person claiming to be Sanchez Caraballo. A criminal
record check revealed, that in June 2015, the Manchester
Police had arrested a person claiming to be Sanchez Caraballo
on prostitution-related charges. The photograph attached to
that police report matched the photographs on the
driver's license and passport application.

Additionally,
fingerprints taken from the person arrested on the
prostitution charge matched the fingerprints of the person
who had previously been convicted of passport fraud.

Based
on his investigation, Trooper O'Leary concluded that in
2015, the defendant had fraudulently used the Sanchez
Caraballo identity to apply for a driver's license and
two temporary vehicle registrations. Trooper O'Leary also
determined that the defendant was the person previously
convicted of passport fraud for using the Sanchez Caraballo
identity.

On
October 28, 2015, Trooper O'Leary applied for a warrant
to search Apartment 402. Trooper O'Leary attached to his
application an affidavit detailing his investigation. New
Hampshire Circuit Court Judge Gerald J. Boyle reviewed the
application and found probable cause to believe that
Apartment 402 contained evidence of the crimes of Tampering
with Public Records or Information in violation of N.H.
RSA 641:7 and Identity Fraud in violation of N.H.
RSA 638:26. Judge Boyle issued a warrant authorizing the
search of Apartment 402 for a detailed list of items
potentially related to those crimes (“Boyle
Warrant”).[2]

On
November 2, 2015, Trooper O'Leary, Sergeant Andrew
Player, Trooper First Class Shane Larkin, and New Hampshire
Probation and Parole Officer Mark O'Donoghue entered
Apartment 402 to execute the Boyle Warrant. At that time, the
New Hampshire State Police Narcotics and Investigations Unit
and FBI Gang Task Force were investigating the defendant for
drug-related activity, but that investigation was unrelated
to the November 2 search of Apartment 402.[3] At the time of
the November 2 search, Trooper Larkin was a member of the
Narcotics and Investigations Unit and Gang Task Force, and
Officer O'Donoghue was working with the Gang Task Force.

During
the initial search, the officers found certain items they
believed were evidence of drug crimes, including a scale, a
large knife, and several cell phones. Inside the
defendant's sock drawer, Trooper Larkin also found $40,
000 in cash wrapped in four separate bundles. After finding
those items, the officers stopped the search and Trooper
O'Leary applied for a warrant to search the apartment for
illegal drugs and evidence of drug crimes. New Hampshire
Circuit Court Judge William Lyons denied the warrant for lack
of probable cause, and the officers subsequently resumed
their search for evidence of identity fraud.

Upon
resuming the search, Trooper Larkin opened a kitchen cabinet
next to the oven. The cabinet looked like a storage area for
plastic shopping bags. Trooper Larkin removed some of the
plastic shopping bags and found a small box inside one of the
bags. The box contained what appeared to be the following: 55
fingers (10 grams) of heroin wrapped in green cellophane;
five plastic bags containing cocaine; a plastic bag
containing blue pills; and a small amount of marijuana. After
discovering these drugs, the officers once again stopped
their search and applied for another warrant. Judge Lyons
approved the application and issued the requested warrant
(“Lyons Warrant”). The Lyons Warrant authorized
the officers to search Apartment 402 for illegal drugs and
other evidence of drug trafficking. After continuing their
search under the combined authority of the Boyle and Lyons
Warrants, the officers found additional evidence of both
identity fraud and drug crimes.

Discussion

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The
defendant moves to suppress all evidence seized from
Apartment 402 (doc. no. 15). The defendant contends
that his Fourth Amendment rights were violated because (1)
the Boyle Warrant was overbroad, and (2) the officers
...

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